Page 32 of Wicked Dares
“Alright, Arthur,” I say finally. “How about we speak another time? Maybe we’ll come to a solution then.” Best to close the loop.
“Sure thing.” Now I can imagine him tipping his head in a Southern gentleman way. “Speak later.”
He hangs up and the line clicks dead, not giving me the chance to set a time for us to follow up.
“Fuck.” I slam the phone down and shake my head.
The silence in the room presses in around me, suddenly stifling. I’ve never come across anything I couldn’t figure out, but it looks like I may have met my match. Arthur Lockwood is giving me a damn run for my money, but I can’t let him railroad me.
My gaze shifts back to the window.
I’ll figure out what I’m doing later. I have to get to that meeting. I’m already half an hour late.
I get up and make my way out of the office.
The corridor outside buzzes with movement. Assistants move between departments, phones ringing in the distance, shoes striking the floors. It’s all loud and busy but not enough to dull the worries in my mind.
When I reach the meeting room, I take a breath before opening the door.
The moment I step in, the energy shifts and my brothers stop talking.
I’m late often, but never for something this important.
“Sorry I’m late, guys.”
Dorian glares at me, chin lifted, expression stern. An empty coffee cup sits beside his laptop, which means I’m later than I thought.
“Where the hell were you?” Dorian barks. “You knew we only had a small window to meet.”
I make my way into the room, pull out a chair beside Locke, and sit.
“I got stuck on a call with Arthur Lockwood.”
As expected, the name drops the temperature in the room by a degree.
Knox rests his hands on the table. His demeanor is calm but sharp. “Where are we now, Levi? Any closer to closing the deal?”
I stifle a groan but meet his gaze head-on, already thinking up a version of the situation that doesn’t make me look weak.
“The man is being difficult. And he’s still demanding to be informed about my personal life in a way no client ever has.”
Locke tilts his head. “What happened to the plan about finding a woman?”
That’s a question I was hopingno onewould ask.
“I need to know what’s going on,” he adds. “Whatever happens with this contract affects me, too.”
“It affects all of us,” Knox jumps in.
I lean back in my chair and run a hand through my hair, feeling cornered.
“I’ll take care of it. Lockwood believes I’m seeing someone.”
The moment I say the words, the room shifts.
They’re already looking at me with skeptical eyes.
Now it’s something else. Something worse.
